October 15, 2025 – New York, NY – The Signal Awards, which recognize the podcasts that define culture, today announced the Winners of its fourth annual honors. In a new milestone for 2025, Ashley Flowers, creator and host of ‘Crime Junkie’ and Founder of Audiochuck, is celebrated with the inaugural Audio Icon Award, recognizing her role in radically shaping the true crime genre and inspiring millions of listeners.
Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson, Katie Couric, Jon Stewart, Sue Bird, Hasan Minhaj, ‘Today, Explained’, ‘The Sam Sanders Show’, ‘The Mel Robbins Podcast’, and more receive top honors.
Ashley Flowers of Audiochuck’s ‘Crime Junkie’, Hasan Minhaj of ‘Hasan Minhaj Doesn’t Know’, Brian Reed and Robyn Semien of Question ‘Everything’ and iHeartPodcasts to be honored with Special Distinction Awards at Winners Party On November 10th in New York City Winner’s Party, presented by ESPN 30 for 30 Podcasts, to take place on November 10th in New York City
Listener’s Choice voting participation surged 126% year-on-year with more than 385,000 votes cast for winners including ‘The Wonder of Stevie,’ ‘Dark History,’ ‘Baby, This is Keke Palmer,’ ‘New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce,’ ‘Scam, Inc.,’ ‘Club Shay Shay,’ and more.
October 15, 2025 – New York, NY – The Signal Awards, which recognize the podcasts that define culture, today announced the Winners of its fourth annual honors.
This year’s winners represent an extraordinary range of voices, genres, and production styles — from ‘IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson’ and ‘The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart’, to ‘Baby, This is Keke Palmer’, ‘Scam, Inc.’ from The Economist, ‘The Mel Robbins Podcast’, and ‘The Rest Is Classified’ from Goalhanger. Other notable winners include ‘The Wonder of Stevie’ (Audible), ‘All There Is with Anderson Cooper’ (CNN), ‘Fashion Neurosis with Bella Freud’ (Vox Media Podcast Network), and ‘Bird’s Eye View with Sue Bird’ (Vox Media Podcast Network), underscoring the diversity and creative range that define today’s podcast landscape.
The Signal Awards are reviewed by the Signal Awards Judging Academy, an esteemed collective of the industry’s architects, trailblazers, and innovators. New Academy members for 2025 include Latif Nasser (Radiolab), Steve McLendon (YouTube), Valentina Bojanini (TED), Tiffany Faure (Spotify), Ney Alvarez (Al Jazeera), Christiana Brenton (FlightStory) and more.
This year, the awards experienced unprecedented participation as the Listener’s Choice campaign drew more than 385,000 public votes cast by upwards of 127,000 voters, marking a 126% increase over 2024. With a growing international cohort of creators and submissions from the U.K., Australia, Canada, Germany, Qatar, and beyond, the Signal Awards Winners reflect not just individual achievements, but the maturation of podcasting itself as a mode of creative expression.
Each year, the Signal Awards also bestow a series of Awards of Distinction, recognizing individuals and companies whose work has made a lasting impact on the podcast industry. Previous recipients include Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers of ‘Las Culturistas’ and Esther Perel of ‘Where Should We Begin?
Ashley Flowers, creator and host of the no. 1 true crime podcast in the world ‘Crime Junkie’ and founder of award-winning media company Audiochuck, will receive the Audio Icon Award. The award celebrates a creator whose work has transformed podcasting and inspired a generation of listeners. A two-time New York TImes Bestselling author, Flowers is recognized for reshaping the true crime genre and building a powerhouse podcast media company with one of the most passionate fan communities in audio.
Hasan Minhaj of ‘Hasan Minhaj Doesn’t Know’ has been awarded the inaugural Cultural Impact Award for the significant impact of the podcast since its launch in 2024. The award is a celebration of not only the caliber of guests on the show, but also the topically urgent dialogues Hasan brings forward as host.
The Special Achievement Award is presented to Brian Reed and Robyn Semien for ‘Question Everything’, honoring creators whose work has pushed the boundaries of the medium. The podcast created by two veteran This American Life Journalists reckons with the purpose, ethics and the definition of journalism itself.
The Podcast Company of the Year award is awarded to iHeartPodcasts, recognized as the organization earning the most Signal Awards in 2025. The title highlights iHeart’s ongoing leadership in supporting diverse creators and shaping the future of podcasting worldwide.
“This year’s Signal Award winners illuminate how audio is shaping discourse,” said Jemma Rose Brown, General Manager of The Signal Awards. “From investigative work that exposes truth, to personal essays that make the intimate universal, and cultural commentary that reframes how we see the world — this year’s winners remind us why podcasting has become not just relevant, but essential.”
Among those earning dual honors with both a Signal Gold selected by the Judging Academy and a Listener’s Choice Award, which is selected by public votes are:
- ‘The Wonder of Stevie’ (Audible) Best Host
- ‘Baby, This is Keke Palmer ‘(Wondery) Interview or Talk Show
- ‘The Mel Robbins Podcast’ (143 Studios) Best Guest
- ‘The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart’ (The Weekly Show) Best Host for and Individual Episode
- ‘Scam, Inc.’ (The Economist) Money & Finance
- ‘Club Shay Shay’ (Shay Shay Media) for Athletes Shaping Culture
- ‘99% Invisible’ (SiriusXM) Documentary
- ‘The Moth Radio Hour’ (The Moth) Commute Podcast
- ‘Charlie’s Place’ (Atlas Obscura) Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Other notable winners of Signal Gold include:
- ‘All There Is with Anderson Cooper’ (CNN) Best Video Podcast
- ‘Fashion Neurosis with Bella Freud’ (Vox Media Podcast Network) Most Innovative Video Podcast
- ‘Next Question with Katie Couric’ (iHeartPodcasts) Best Host in News & Politics
- ‘The Colin and Samir Show Best Video Podcast’
- ‘Bird’s Eye View with Sue Bird’ (Vox Media Podcast Network) Sports
- ‘The Rest Is Classified’ (Goalhanger) Best Video Podcast Co-Host Team
- ‘Pablo Torre Finds Out’ (Meadowlark Media) Sports
- ‘Liberty Lost’ (Wondery) Documentary
- ‘Suave Season Two’ (Futuro Media Group) Documentary
- ‘Proxy with Yowei Shaw’ (PRX) Conversation Starter
- ‘Our Ancestors Were Messy’ History
Indie standouts such as ‘Debt Heads’, ‘Hyperfixed’, ‘Señora Sex Ed’, and ‘Things That Go Boom’ also took home top honors, which underscores Signal Award’s ongoing commitment to championing diverse voices and original points of view.
The Winner’s Party, presented by ESPN 30 for 30 Podcasts, will take place on November 10th at Public Records in Brooklyn, NY, uniting creators, producers, and industry leaders to celebrate this year’s achievements.
About The Signal Awards
The Signal Awards is mission-focused on uplifting the podcast medium by recognizing the
most potent, meaningful and unprecedented audio projects being made today. Now in its third year, entrants to The Signal Awards are reviewed by The Signal Awards Judging Academy, an esteemed collective made up of the architects, instigators and trailblazers of the medium. The Signal Awards set a standard for editorial excellence by honoring the organizations, artists, mavericks, brands and storytellers who are shaping the podcast industry.
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Find The Signal Awards Online
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2025 Winner Highlights
Interview or Talk Show
- Baby, This is Keke Palmer GOLD, LISTENER’S CHOICE
- Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
- How to Fail with Elizabeth Day
- The Best People with Nicolle Wallace
- Making Space with Hoda Kotb
- Angie Martinez IRL
- All There Is with Anderson Cooper
Best Co-Host Team (Shows)
- The Rest Is Classified GOLD
- New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce LISTENER’S CHOICE
- Odd Lots
- Unspooled
- Scamfluencers
- The Unusual Suspects with Kenya Barris and Malcolm Gladwell
- Pillow Talk
- Odd Lots
Conversation Starter
- TED Talks Daily LISTENER’S CHOICE
- A Slight Change of Plans GOLD
- Proxy with Yowei Shaw GOLD
- Señora Sex Ed GOLD
- Magical Overthinkers
- Panic World
- Against the Rules with Michael Lewis
- Top of Mind with Julie Rose
Best Co-Host Team (Video Podcast)
- The Rest Is Classified GOLD
- IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson
- One Song
- A Touch More with Sue Bird & Megan Rapinoe
- My Momma Told Me
Best New Podcast
- Hyperfixed LISTENER’S CHOICE
- Debt Heads GOLD
- Aspire with Emma Grede
- Mind Your Own with Lupita Nyong’o
- Pitch Playground
- Signal Hill
Best Host
- Murder, Mystery & Makeup GOLD, LISTENER’S CHOICE
- Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend GOLD
- Apple News in Conversation
- The B* Word
- Seen on the Screen with Jacqueline Coley
- Prof G Conversations
Limited Series and Specials Documentary
- Liberty Lost GOLD
- Suave Season Two GOLD
- Flesh and Code GOLD, LISTENER’S CHOICE
- The Network
- NPR’s Embedded: Alternate Realities
- Half-Life
- Journeys with Grace
- Question Everything
- Camp Shame
- Final Thoughts: Jerry Springer
Pop Culture (Shows)
- Baby, This is Keke Palmer LISTENER’S CHOICE
- It’s Been a Minute with Brittany Luse GOLD
- Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang
- The Sam Sanders Show
- C’est Presque Bon à Savoir
- Juicy Scoop with Heather McDonald
- New Rory & Mal
- We Have The Receipts
- Lemme Say This
Athletes Shaping Culture
- Club Shay Shay GOLD, LISTENER’S CHOICE
- A Touch More with Sue Bird and Megan Rapinoe
- Netflix Sports Club Podcast
- 7PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony
- Footballers Unfiltered
